Kenzo Takada studied Japanese tailoring at Tokyo’s Bunka Fashion College, where he took an interest in the kimono and other traditional cuts.In his subsequent career he revisited the kimono time and again, merging Asian and western influences. The cut remained at the forefront of fashion throughout the 1970s and 1980s thanks to his endless reinterpretations in the form of shirts, coats and cross-draped skirts. The kimono shirt, featuring wide sleeves and a belted waist, became one of his signature pieces over the years.

Carol and Humberto are now conjuring up new twists on the kimono. It is featured throughout the women’s Fall/Winter 2013 collection in three-quarter-sleeve shirts, belted braided coats speckled with eye motifs, skirts and double-breasted jackets. This staple is part and parcel of the Kenzo DNA, constantly reinvented in new reincarnations, inspired by tradition and realized in modern cuts and materials.